Love Stack, Baby

If you go out for dinner on Valentine’s Day, you can still impress your date with something you’ve whipped up. Save room for these Chocolate Filo Stacks.

You can bake the filo dough and prepare the pudding ahead; all that’s left to do when you get home is assemble the dessert, light some candles and pour the Champagne. (And if you have leftovers, refrigerate the pudding and store the filo squares in an airtight container to enjoy the next day.)

Decorate the stacks with red raspberries, mint leaves and a sprinkle of chopped chocolate. After all, you can never have enough chocolate on Valentine’s Day.

Donna Deane’s book “Low Fat Kitchen” includes more than 100 recipes created especially for this column. To order, call (800) 246-4042. The price is $20.45 including shipping and sales tax.

Chocolate Filo Stacks

Active Work Time: 20 minutes * Total Preparation Time: 45 minutes

1/4 cup finely chopped almonds

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar

3 sheets filo dough

Nonstick cooking spray

1/3 cup cocoa

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 1/4 cups nonfat milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup chopped bittersweet chocolate

Mint leaves, for garnish

24 raspberries, for garnish

* Combine almonds and 1 tablespoon sugar; set aside.

* Lightly spray 1 sheet filo dough with cooking spray. Sprinkle filo with 1/3 nut mixture. Top with second sheet filo dough, spray it with cooking spray and sprinkle with 1/3 nut mixture. Top with third sheet, spray again, and top with remaining nuts. Cut filo lengthwise into six strips, then crosswise into 4 strips so you have 24 squares.

* Set filo squares on baking sheets coated with cooking spray and bake at 350 degrees until light brown, about 5 minutes. Let cool.

* Combine cocoa, 1/3 cup sugar, cornstarch and salt in saucepan. Gradually blend in milk. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir until thickened and cornstarch is cooked, 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla. Cool slightly, then cover with plastic wrap and cool completely. Stir in 1/2 cup chopped chocolate once mixture has cooled.

* To assemble stacks, spoon about 2 tablespoons chocolate pudding on 1 filo square. Top with another filo square, then 2 more tablespoons pudding and another filo square. Repeat with remaining filo squares and pudding. Garnish each stack with mint leaf and 3 raspberries. Garnish serving plates with remaining chopped chocolate.

8 servings. Each serving: 183 calories; 141 mg sodium; 1 mg cholesterol; 7 grams fat; 29 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams protein; 0.50 gram fiber.